'Chucky' series creator Don Mancini talks horror icon's presidential era and LGBTQ+ representation

Chucky, the redheaded demon doll in overalls, is perhaps the ultimate crossover star.

He's appeared in seven films, a 2019 reboot, comic books and an expanding array of tie-in merchandise, from T-shirts to collectible dolls. Every Halloween, you're guaranteed to see a few of them running around.

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His latest venture? TV star. "Chucky" the series premiered in 2021 on Syfy and the USA Network to big ratings and critical acclaim. (It currently holds a 93% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes.) Viewership numbers have increased every season, and last year, it was the No. 1 series across both networks. The second half of Season 3  premiered this month.

Don Mancini, creator of the "Child's Play" franchise, seized the opportunity to dig deeper into his character's winding story. The TV series is a direct sequel to the 2017 film "Cult of Chucky."

"This is more like a novel, whereas movies are short stories. It sounds too grand to say, (but) you're weaving a tapestry, and you go down different avenues with different characters and relationships," Mancini says during a Zoom call, a Chucky doll seated next to him.

"I think it's really a testament to the team that we've lasted three seasons — and hopefully counting."

"Chucky" the series is led by a trio of teenagers: Jake Wheeler (Zackary Arthur), who buys Chucky at a yard sale; Devon Evans (Björgvin Arnarson), Jake's boyfriend and a true crime podcaster; and Lexy Cross (Alyvia Alyn Lind), a school bully who teams up with Jake and Devon to take down Chucky. They all have a chemistry that feels like true friendship.

Mancini, who is gay, drew from his own adolescence for the character of Jake, whose relationship with Devon has been prominent throughout the series.

"I think that being able to sort of Trojan horse any kind of social message inside something, in this case, the horror genre, a 'Chucky show,'  it's just unusual," Mancini says. "I wanted to normalize the notion of examining a romance between two teenage gay boys and doing that in an almost casual way, in the way that it would be casual as we've seen for years and decades in shows where the teenagers happen to be straight. I wanted to give teen queer horror fans characters that they could identify with."

Mancini has frequently included LGBTQ+ characters and storylines in the franchise, most notably with 2004's "Seed of Chucky." That film introduced Glen/Glenda, the gender-fluid offspring of Chucky and Tiffany that, two decades later, represents a landmark for big-screen discussions of gender identity.

Glen and Glenda return for the "Chucky" series, played by nonbinary actor Lachlan Watson. The franchise has examined gender roles through Chucky himself, who has inhabited the physical bodies of men and women.

"Chucky" boasts another stroke of genius in that several characters from past films appear in the series. Brad Dourif returns as the voice of Chucky, and his daughter Fiona Dourif reprises her role as Nica Pierce, the protagonist from "Cult of Chucky." 

Jennifer Tilly returns to crazy town as a heightened version of herself and Tiffany Valentine, Chucky's doll bride. Alex Vincent and Christine Elise, who starred in the first two "Child's Play" films, also appear in the series. There have also been kitschy cameos, from Gina Gershon to Kenan Thompson to Nia Vardalos.

Those aspects of continuity and humor, along with liberal amounts of gore, have made Chucky, as a character and franchise, a unique part of the pop culture landscape.

"There's this immediacy with the audience that I think is really stimulating, and we're also all just kind of in shape, the writers, the directors, the actors, the puppeteers, especially," Mancini says. "I think that everyone is so in a groove right now that people are just really doing their best work."

The current season sees Chucky in his presidential era. Yes, the serial killer doll has infiltrated the White House as the favorite toy of the president's son. I'll let you make your own jokes about political puppets and deranged gingers. Mancini avoids any specific political jabs and says he's more interested in the ghost "lore" surrounding the White House that involves everyone from Abraham Lincoln to Harry Truman.

Still, Mancini knew what he was getting into.

"There's just something amusing inherently about Chucky being in this place, just the implication. We know who he is, we know what his values, or lack thereof, are. What kind of damage can he do from inside those walls? That was fun," Mancini says. "People are digging it. Most of us have worked together on this franchise for so long, for years and decades in a lot of cases, and we don't take any of it for granted. We're just really happy to be able to do it. So keep watching it, please. We can keep doing it."